Directed by Fred Schepisi from a screenplay by Tom Stoppard, The Russia House (1990) is a fiercely intelligent adaptation of John le Carré's best-selling thriller about the pursuit of a scientific manuscript that could harm the glasnost Russians while possibly helping the American and British secret services. Stickily involved in the plot are a British publisher (Sean Connery, giving one of his greatest performances), a level-headed Russian beauty (the great Michelle Pfeiffer), and the manuscript’s cagey author (Klaus Maria Brandauer); even as they attempt to deal with the bureaucrats (including Roy Scheider, James Fox, John Mahoney, and, fabulously, the director Ken Russell), these three find themselves engaged in a passionate personal drama.